Note: With a heavy heart, I have had to withdraw from the following retreat. Due to my mother’s terminal cancer diagnosis, I am unable to travel out of the country and am taking a hiatus to focus on her care. I still encourage you to attend this retreat — Becky is an incredible human and it’s going to be an incredible experience. Here’s hoping I’ll be able to partner with her again in the future.

I had a feeling that 2018 had some incredible adventures in store — and now, here’s another one.

I am absolutely beyond thrilled to announce a collaboration with Becky Van Dijk of We Are Travel Girls: an eight day entrepreneurship retreat in Bali! Yep, you read that right. You. Me. Becky. Business. Blogging. Bali. It’s going to be one (well, technically two!) for the books — don’t miss these weeks on yet another one of my favorite islands of all time.

If you follow me on Instagram, you know that Becky and I had an epic girlmance in Israel. (It’s like a bromance for chicks, okay? Just go with it. I’m trying to make this happen.) We bonded over travel, blogging, and our passion for planning retreats. And I don’t think we stopped laughing for a week! Needless to say, it wasn’t long before we were daydreaming about how we could collaborate someday.

So it was an instant “sign me up” when Becky asked me to join her as co-host of her signature Business and Blogging Retreat on her home island of Bali this October! I’m super pumped about this particular collaboration for many reasons, one being that while Becky and I have landed in similar positions — traveling the world, running financially successful blogs, and now, empowering women through custom crafted travel experiences, we took completely different paths to get there.

Becky and I bring totally unique perspectives and lessons from our collective eleven years as entrepreneurs and bloggers. I always knew that I was interesting in running a retreat on this theme, and so many of you have requested it, but I knew that it needed more than one voice — I would only do it with the perfect team or partner. And the universe delivered Becky, a firework with a degree in Business & Economics, ten years in finance and a successful entrepreneurial career launching We Are Travel Girls & Travel Girls Getaways, whose voice and vision I have utmost respect for. Namaste, universe!

And friends, this retreat is not just for straight-up bloggers or bloggers-to-be. This curriculum is relevant to anyone who has a business or business idea and would like to build an online presence they can be proud of, create a community with their audience and customers, network with other entrepreneurial-minded women, and grow their social media following. We’ll cover branding, marketing, why a blog is crucial, building your email list and other topics relevant for any small business, as well as send you off with beautiful content for your website and social media accounts.

Starting a vegan food podcast? Launching a line of handmade jewellery? Opening a yoga studio or want to increase your online presence and profile as a freelance instructor? Simply want to share your travel experiences with the world through blogging? This retreat is right for all y’all. The group size is intimate enough that it will be relevant to those who have been at it for years and ready to take their blog or business to the next level, as well as those just getting started. I have always loved both mentoring and being mentored and I can’t wait to dig in and build these relationships throughout the retreat. Becky and I are going to be all up in your business’s business, whatever it may be.

And wow, what a place to do it! There is something magical about Bali — there’s good reason it tops so many bucket lists. Since my first trip in 2013, I’ve been totally entranced by everything about this island — I’ve even considered moving there! Lucky for us, Becky already has, making her the perfect host to show us the island. This is a very active retreat with a packed itinerary to highlight the best of Bali and provide an in-depth learning experience at the same time. But fear not — there will be plenty of free time to relax and enjoy our luxurious villa, and to bond with our crew! I already can’t wait to sip poolside cocktails while we plan world domination.

Your Investment

The dates of this retreat are October 12-October 19th. Additionally, there is another retreat being held from October 1-October 8th. While due to scheduling conflicts I will not be able to fully co-host the first retreat, I will be there as a guest speaker leading specific workshops and teaching yoga.

There are 12 spots available for each retreat. The all-inclusive price for the retreat is $3,000USD, with ten spots available at this price. Additionally, there are two spots available at $2,800USD for the smallest room in the villa. All other rooms are of similar size.

The Villa

You will be staying in a dreamy seven bedroom, ten bathroom villa in Umalas. Nestled between bustling Seminyak and hip Canggu and just a forty-five minute drive from Denpasar International Airport, you couldn’t ask for a better Bali base — secluded and peaceful yet with easy access to popular restaurants, beach bars, and boutiques. The villa is on a quiet residential street surrounded by rice fields and other villas, where you can step outside the front gates and watch Balinese workers out on the rice fields and families scooting by on their motorcycles.

You, me, Becky, and thirteen other travel-loving ladies will call this insanely luxurious villa home for seven blissful nights! All rooms are based on shared occupancy with one other girl, and feature separate beds and large double en-suite bathroom. At the end of the retreat, Becky will pry me away while I cling to the door-frames wracked with sobs.

The villa features daily maid service, twenty-four hour security and a dedicated retreat manager onsite. It has a has a large on-site gym, a spacious indoor yoga and meditation studio where I’ll teach vinyasa classes, cinema room, and private massage rooms. There is a large outdoor swimming pool — stocked with Instagrammable pool floats, of course — extensive gardens, and plenty of places to relax and unwind.

Healthy meals will be provided at the villa daily, peppered with visits to a curated list of our favorite local cafes and restaurants. Bali is a haven for delicious, fresh food, and you’ll experience the best of it. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are all included, so you don’t need to bring anything besides your appetite. Highlights include:

Traditional Indonesian welcome dinner at the villa

Teppanyaki dining experience at the villa’s private Teppanyaki table

Sunset cocktails at a beachfront bohemian restaurant

Lunch at a luxury cooking school in Ubud

Meals at epic beach clubs and beautiful rice terraces

And more!

Business and Blogging

Get ready for a getaway that’s equal parts educational and luxurious! Throughout this retreat, we will offer a series of business and blogging workshops designed to kick-start or accelerate your business or hobby. Becky and I, along with other members of the We Are Travel Girls team, will present on topics that include:

I love that Becky and I have such complementary strengths as businesswomen — while social media has never come naturally to me, in less than 18 months she grew the following on the @WeAreTravelGirls Instagram to over 285K, and leveraged the power of We are Travel Girls Pinterest to drive incredible traffic to the website. She will be sharing our knowledge of how to organically grow across multiple social media platforms creating a highly engaged audience for your blog or business. We will also work with you to understand your business goals to determine which platforms you should focus on.

I’m most excited to share my journey of finding my voice, finding a way to stay authentic and vulnerable in an ever more polished industry, and building a travel tribe. I also look forward to sharing how I have adapted to the constant changes in the blogging industry for the past nine years — including my various income sources and how they have radically transformed over time and continue to do so.

We both strongly believe that there’s no one path to success, and that success is going to look different for different people. We’re here to help define what it looks like for you, and head in that direction. We haven’t even started yet, and we’re already proud of you! Which is why we both look forward to promoting the blogs and businesses of all our retreat guests on Alex in Wanderland and We Are Travel Girls social media.

We have approximately 20+ hours of formal workshops factored into the itinerary, however Becky and I believe some of the best creative breakthroughs come when we are far away from our screens, so these workshops will be heavily interspersed with time to explore our favorite corners of Bali, from waterfalls to local temples to hip beach clubs and beyond.

We’ll have plenty of time to daydream, brainstorm, and blow off steam when we just plain need a break, but keep in mind all activities and workshops are optional so if you prefer to skip a workshop or activity to chill by the pool, we are all about it.

Oh, The Places We’ll Go

This retreat combines a packed itinerary exploring the island’s waterfalls, white sand beaches, rice terraces, monkey temple, and lake temples with a series of boutique workshops and restorative activities like massage and yoga — taught by me!

This experience was designed to be a place where you can make memories on one of the world’s most beautiful islands, get outside and create content for your blog and social media, kickstart your blog or entrepreneurial journey and above all – create enough space and time for us to build real friendships, share our experiences and go on to support one another’s businesses and dreams.

Subject to change, and expect surprises, but here’s what we have planned!

Day 1 – Arrive: Arrive at the villa and spend the afternoon settling in and getting to know each other. Over sunset, we will have a special Traditional Indonesian welcome dinner and drinks at the villa.

Day 2 – Umalas and Canggu: Start your day with breakfast at the villa, followed by the first introductory morning workshop outlining all of the material you will learn over the coming week. After the workshop, head to one of Bali’s best kept secret lunch spots with a beautiful view of the rice terraces. Afterwards, head back to the villa for a relaxing afternoon by the pool and in-villa massages. For sunset, we will go to one of the best beach bars in Canggu for cocktails, and then head to a wonderful local cafe for dinner.

Day 3 – North Bali:Head up north to experience a quieter side of Bali. We start the day with a visit to a breathtaking lake temple. Next, we will stop by a photogenic landmark for a fun group picture, then onto a very unique stop at the twin lakes overlook where you can grab some Instagram shots on the swings. Then we enjoy lunch with an amazing view before heading to a nearby waterfall for an afternoon dip!

Day 4 – Uluwatu: We start the day with morning workshops before heading down to the south of the island to spend the afternoon at one of Bali’s most beautiful beaches in Uluwatu. We will enjoy lunch at a very cool beach club before hitting the water for paddle boarding, kayaking and relaxing in the sun. We will watch the sunset by fire pits on the beach before heading back to the villa for dinner.

Day 5 – Umalas and Canggu:After a relaxing beach day it’s time to get to work today! After morning breakfast we will host another in-depth workshop and really dive into how to get your business off the ground. We will break for lunch at the villa, and then have time in the afternoon for relaxing by the pool and in-villa massages. At night, we will head to one of Canggu’s most photogenic beachfront restaurants for sunset cocktails and dinner.

Day 6 – Ubud: Made famous by Eat, Pray, Love – Ubud is in the heart of Bali and popular with yoga enthusiasts. We will start our day in Ubud visiting a luxury cooking school where you will learn traditional Indonesian cooking and eat a Balinese lunch of ceremonial food that you won’t get to experience anywhere else on the island! After lunch we will head to the famous sprawling rice terraces and see the cheeky monkeys at the Monkey Forest before heading back to the villa for dinner.

Day 7 – Seminyak and Canggu: We will have another detailed workshop this morning before heading to one of Bali’s hippest beachfront restaurants for lunch. After lunch, you will be free to do some shopping, visit the beach, or go to a nearby temple. We will have our final special group dinner and reflect on the amazing week we all shared together!

Day 8 – Departure:The morning will be the closing workshops where we recap everything we’ve learned over the week and outline your next steps to make sure you are on the right path for your future plans. You will leave the retreat with a strong set of new skills and business ideas, some incredible memories, plenty of “about me” page photo candidates, and a group of women who you will likely immediately start planning your next trip with! (Becky and I sure did!)

Join Us

These retreats are expected to sell out! The last Wander Women retreat sold out in less than four days, so please don’t hesitate to reach out if you’re interested, to avoid disappointment. Can’t make this one? Sign up for my newsletter to be the first to know when enrollment opens on future retreats!

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If you’re ready to join us for an epic week in paradise, please complete the following application and we will be in touch to arrange a call with you. Don’t be intimidated — we just want to make sure it’s a perfect fit. After the call, a $750 non-refundable deposit is required to reserve your spot.

No deposit or commitment is required to fill out the form. We will review your application and once your place is confirmed we will send you the booking and deposit payment link. Please review We Are Travel Girls’ Frequently Asked Questions page for more information on the Bali Retreats.

Remember, don’t hesitate to email me at alex@alexinwanderland.com with any and all questions or concerns over if this is the right retreat for you. I’d love to chat!

I can’t wait to bliss out + geek out on blogging and business with you in Bali!

This looks so fun!! I would love to visit Bali and just kick around there for a couple weeks. I won’t be joining you guys for this retreat because I don’t have the spare cash right now and also I don’t have a blog lol, but this is going to be fantastic for the people who do go!

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I'm a New York native who left my home to explore the world slowly and thoroughly. I’m just a little obsessed with photography, scuba diving, and reading guidebooks to countries I have no immediate plans to visit.